"Party Schools" And The Risks Of Substance Abuse During The College Years

College is a major risk period for binge drinking and the development of
substance abuse problems, and parents and prospective students should examine
the drug and alcohol policies of a prospective school carefully before
committing to four years of temptation.

As much as school administrators try to minimize the negative repercussions
of a "party school" reputation, there is a statistical correlation between
greater rates of alcohol and drug abuse and dependencies at these so called
party schools than at other comparable colleges.

Substance abuse in college

College alcohol and drug abuse is a pretty big problem, and the percentage of
alcohol and drug abusing people at colleges statistically exceeds the levels of
abuse in non academic environments. There are a number of factors that
contribute to increasing substance use and abuse during the formative
transitional years out of the family home through college, but one of these is
certainly a persistent collegiate culture which promotes binge drinking and
recreational drug abuse.

With as many as 33% (Harvard medical school reporting) of college students
meeting the criteria for substance abuse, and a significant percentage of these
students meeting the more serious criteria for alcohol or drug dependence,
addictions professionals acknowledge that college substance use represents a
significant challenge to health.

When Choosing A College…

While the Princeton Review rankings are unlikely accurate, parents and
concerned students can enhance safety from abuse and from the negative behaviors
of other abusing students by enrolling in schools with sound alcohol policies,
and alcohol free residential areas.

College is an exciting, stressful and
experimental period, and the corresponding risks of abuse and dependence during
these years are tragically high. Choosing a lower risk facility may be a wise
choice for students worried about social environments conducive to destructive
substance use and abuse.

The University of Georgia should be commended for its efforts to limit the
destruction of substance abuse within its campuses, and the University of
Colorado at Boulder deserves ridicule for its transparent press release reaction
to a persistent problem. With too many deaths, and tens of thousands of
addictions developing each year at party colleges across the country,
fundamental and institutional change is required to increase the safety of a
transitional four year period into adulthood.

Party Schools, and Attempts At Change

Two opposite ends of the spectrum responses were elicited by the University of Colorado at Boulder and the University of Georgia, both included within the top ten rankings in recent years.

Colorado was the number one school in the
nation for campus substance abuse, in 2004. The University then mandated that all incoming freshmen complete a
minimal one hour internet course on alcohol abuse in a lip service attempt at
change; in contrast, the University of Georgia has fundamentally changed alcohol
related policies in an effort to curb on campus drinking. Students reported in
violation of alcohol policies are placed on probation, required to attend
alcohol awareness courses and their parents notified; and a second violation can
result in academic suspension.

The school has also opened alcohol awareness centers, and has tried to limit
the use of alcohol at infamous tailgating parties before football games.

While one hour of superficial internet education cannot seriously be expected
to create change, the comprehensive policy shifts of UAG are likely to have some
persistent bettering influence over reputation and student behaviors.

How much of a parental and policing role educational institutes should play
in the lives of their students provokes debate, and the reality is that
universities have little influence over the behaviors of their students off
campus, but by making concrete and substantial changes to alcohol policies,
schools can effect change, and make colleges safer places to study. Alcohol has
always had a place in American schools, but because a tradition exists does not
mandate a continuation.

Heavy drinkers tend to think that other people drink more than they do (myth). If people with such misperceptions get accurate information about how much others in their community are drinking, they are more likely to reduce their overall consumption. Giving people who have incorrect beliefs about a negative behavior accurate information is called social norms marketing – and it is a cheap and effective way to reduce negative behaviors, like binge drinking, across a large population.